Industry Overview: Writing/Editing Genres

This evening I’ll be speaking about genres. Now the term, genre, means many things and different things to different people. The term genre comes from the Latin – genus, meaning type or category. It is a term that is used to categorise – to enable some sorting out or classification of work. This facilitates discussion about a specific area of work. In the world of writing the term genre may be used to refer to:

Our talk this evening focuses on the genres of popular fiction. But before we look into those, I’ll be looking more closely at the notion of genres and how they help us explore and discuss literature.

I’d like to read to you a quote of two writers J. Andersen and Bazerman which explains that:

Genres help us navigate the complex worlds of written communication and symbolic activity, because in recognizing a text type we recognize many things about the institutional and social setting, the activities being proposed, the roles available to writer and reader, the motives, ideas ideology and expected content of the document, and where this is all might fit in our life ...

Therefore when we hear that a book belongs to a particular genre, immediately we know and understand a lot about it. For instance, if we hear that a book is of the crime genre, we know that we’ll be reading or writing a story that is strongly based in plot, action and tension. It will possibly have a strong sense of place and through the characters we will come to understand much about the society in which they live and act. We know that the main characters will probably be criminals, lawyers, police, investigators and victims of crime etc. We’ll also get to explore much about good and evil.

In the book “Genre and the New Rhetoric” by Freedman and Medway we find two important areas in genres thought. The first is the North American School, the second, the Sydney school.

The North American School of Genres takes its idea from a rhetoric angle by asking questions in order to make a statement rather than to get an answer. It does so by addressing the issue in question once or many times.

The Sydney School of Genres focuses on linguistics. Linguistics studies the way in which language works. Emphasis in both schools is placed on the job of the… “Social in conceptualizing and understanding genres and the role of context”…

The context of a word or sentence consists of the words or sentences before and after it which helps to make its meaning clear.

Interestingly enough, it should be noted that genres give us readers and writers a means of direction. Genres are in one sense texts joined with the literary as the more we are aware of communication, the more we comprehend and use the literature produced by these actions. Important here is the human experience which states that through existentialism everyone is responsible for the results of their own actions.

At this point an analysis of literary fiction is required to show how it is an essential part of popular fiction. A juxtaposition will be made between the readers and critics in this area.

I will make a brief outline of E. Lowell’s view compared with my own and that of A. Calvert. What needs to be pointed out is that within the writing and publishing industry the terms Literary Fiction and Popular Fiction are usually understood as:

Literary Fiction is that fiction where the author uses more advanced or sophisticated or nuanced language.

Popular Fiction, is that fiction where the writing is more accessible (and therefore more popular) with readers.

E. Lowell, states that there really is no difference between literary and popular fiction. One is a combination of the other:

…“Some people maintain that by definition, literary fiction cannot be popular, because literary equals difficult and inaccessible”...

…“but there are exceptions to every rule... that’s how you recognise both the rule and the exceptions. As a rule, accessibility is one of the hallmarks of popular fiction”...

But remember the significance of readers here. Readers are just as keen as the writers of literary fiction to appreciate this form of writing. Namely, by having less bias than the critics when approaching classics like Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights”.

The eeriness of ghosts can be interpreted in “Wuthering Heights” where:

…“The intense horror of nightmare came over me, I tried to draw back my arm, but the hand clung to it, and a most melancholy voice sobbed, Let me in – let me in!” “who are you” Catherine Linton it replied shiveringly”…

In the story “Death of An Old Old Man” from “Over to You” a former fighter pilot expresses his fear of death during war:

…“It whispers to you about how your corpse will look when it is charred, how black it will be and how it will be twisted and brittle, with the face and the fingers black...when you die”...

According to A. Calvert, Popular Fiction ...“sells well as it consists of a plot, a heroe/a heroine, action convincing characters and character motivations, a setting and correct use of language”... The text is written with the intention of meeting the reader’s predictability. This story has to be tactfully structured to appeal to the reader’s wants and desires. The essential elements of fiction writing are to... “provide entertainment and enjoyment, give readers a means of escapism, to present a sense of truth, and to inspire and hearten readers.”

It is important to note that Popular Fiction can and cannot be a classic text. But what does one mean by “Classic”? Wuthering Heights is a classic literary text which many would consider Popular Fiction. Are we exemplifying Gothic Victorian works such as Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights which is a Gothic horror romance classic? Or do we mean the Contemporary writing of Roald Dahl’s Short Stories which were so deeply horrific that some were made into episodes of the modem classic thriller Tales of the Unexpected on Television just recently, and which also falls under the umbrella of Popular Fiction.

The question of what actually is Classical Popular Fiction is open to debate and we are all free to express our own opinions and views as there is no black and white answer. If you are like me and you are keen on Victorian Classics as well as Roald Dahl’s works which are Contemporary Classics, then you can see how Popular Fiction captivates a vast variety of readers. The end result is that by juxtaposing the Victorian era with the present the writer’s world caters for many expectations and textual appetites of readers in both these eras, since the terms Genre, Popular Fiction and Literary Fiction are used.

Industry Overview

Writing/Editing Genres

Research Project Brief – Group 8

Are there benefits from writing within the genres? What are they?

According to J. Anderson (2000:p.1)[1] in his article “Genre”, the important point to be stressed is that one must comprehend and identify different types of texts and what they establish in human occurrences based on the creation and reading of texts. In effect this outlines the benefits from writing within the genres.

Furthermore, J. Anderson (2000:p.1)[2] states that in the book “Genre and the New Rhetoric” by Freedman and Medway (1994, pp.8-10) we find two major areas of significance in genres thought. The first is the North American School, the second, the Sydney School. The former takes its concept of “genres from a rhetorical tradition”. Here genres are seen as “typified rhetorical actions based on recurrent situations”. If something typifies a situation or a thing, it is characteristic of that situation or thing, and shows what it is like. A rhetorical question is one which is asked in order to make a statement rather than to get an answer. If something recurs, it happens again, either once or many times. The basis here is on a socio-historical idea for the North American School of Genres focusing on a social and interactional context. On the other hand The Sydney School of Genres focuses on “Michael A. K. Halliday’s systematic functional linguistics”. Linguistics is the study of the way in which language works. Emphasis is placed here on “formal textual features” and shows a linguistic direction of genres. Both schools place emphasis on the job of the “social in conceptualizing and understanding genres and the role of context”. The context of a word or sentence consists of the words or sentences before and after it which help to make its meaning clear.

Furthermore, J. Anderson (2000:p.1)[3] points out that, in general, the idea of genres looks at various characteristics that show how texts differ from one another whether verbal or written. To do this one must identify a certain piece of text by understanding a type of communicative incident and area where that writing (genres) is presented to complete a given job.

In J. Anderson (2000:p.l)[4], Bazerman (2000 p.16) argues that...

Genres help us navigate the complex worlds of written communication and symbolic activity, because in recognizing a text type we recognize many things about the institutional and social setting, the activities being proposed, the roles available to writer and reader, the motives, ideas, ideology and expected content of the document, and where this all might fit in our life...

An institution is a custom or system that is considered an important or typical feature of a society, usually because it has existed for a long time. An ideology is a set of beliefs, especially the political beliefs on which people, parties, or countries base their actions.

Interestingly enough, it should be noted, that according to J. Anderson[5] (2000:p1.), genres give us readers and writers a means of direction. Genres are in one sense a “textual existentialism” and are fused with literacy, as the more we are aware of communication, the more we comprehend and use the literature produced by these actions. Existentialism is a philosophical belief which stresses the importance of human experience and says that everyone is responsible for the results of their own actions.

What then is the significance of books? J. Anderson (2000:p.1)[6] argues that texts are important to both context and action. This point can be stressed further. To create and use a text is to be placed in a “context with socially and historically developed typified activities of producing and reading texts”. Typification becomes even more significant in regard to “genres and written communication”. If someone typifies a particular type of person or attitude they show all the most usual characteristics of that person or attitude.

One needs to juxtapose the interaction between reader and writer to establish their link in communication, thus, expressing the benefits of genres writing. Therefore, J. Anderson (2000:p.2)[7] points out...

“Given that writers and readers are separated in time and space, a means is needed in order to communicate appropriately and avoid, or minimize the risk of misunderstandings”.

J. Anderson (2000:p.2)[8] states that to ensure concise communication, and, standardised practices and activities, requires a set guideline to ensure comprehensiveness. To standardize things means to change them so that they all have the same features. If you put a belief or method into practice, you behave or act in accordance with it. The activities of a group are the things that they do in order to achieve their aims.

In Anderson (2000 p.2)[9] (Bazerman, 2004, p.316) points out that...

“In a typified communicative activity certain actions are carried out in certain situations following a certain form of communication, leading to the ability to recognize and understand particular standardized practices and activities”.

…“Thus typification is what allows one to recognize and identify a particular context and its particular forms of communication by its genres”…

At this point an analysis of literary fiction is required to show how it is an essential part of popular fiction. A juxtaposition will be made between the readers and critics in this area.

E. Lowell (2004 p.1)[11], states that there really is no difference between literary and popular fiction. One is a combination of the other:

…“Some people maintain that by definition, literary fiction cannot be popular, because literary equals difficult and inaccessible”…

…“but there are exceptions to every rule... that’s how you recognise both the rule and the exceptions. As a rule, accessibility is one of the hallmarks of popular fiction”…

A hallmark is the most typical quality or feature of something or someone.

According to E. Lowell (2004p.1)[12], critics judge authors in literary fiction on their ability to write in English… “And on the lack of predictability of the narrative itself”… With literary fiction the promising reviews by critics are paramount since... “the critics are the only audience that matters, which explains why literary fiction often pays badly. [Since] Critics get their books for free”…

Something that is paramount or of paramount importance is more important than anything else.

But remember the significance of readers here. Readers are just as keen as the writers of literary fiction to appreciate this form of writing. Namely, by having less bias than the critics when approaching classics like Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights”.

The eeriness of ghosts can be interpreted in “Wuthering Heights” where:

…“The intense horror of nightmare came over me, I tried to draw back my arm, but the hand clung to it, and a most melancholy voice sobbed, Let me in – let me in!” “who are you” Catherine Linton it replied shiveringly”… (E. Brontë, 1981 p.67)[13]

E. Lowell (2004:p.1)[14], points out that in popular fiction the major critics are the readers who actually purchase the books. The emphasis is to entertain readers rather than to exercise them… “Popular fiction readers want everyday language to be obscured to some extent, to create excitement. This makes reviews insignificant to sales, since there is little determination by the readers in this area of writing”. One cannot ignore a modern classic such as Roald Dahl’s “The Collected Short Stories of Roald Dahl” at this point.

If you exercise authority, rights, or responsibilities, you use them. Something which is obscure is known by only a few people, is complex and difficult to understand, and is difficult to see.

In the story “Death of An Old Old Man” from “Over to You” a former fighter pilot expresses his fear of death during war:

…“It whispers to you about how your corpse will look when it is charred, how black it will be and how it will be twisted and brittle, with the face and the fingers black…when you die” … (R. Dahl, 1991 p.200)[15]

According to A. Calvert, (2005:p.9)[16] Popular Fiction… “sells well as it consists of a plot, a heroe/a heroine, action convincing characters and character motivations, a setting and correct use of language”... The text is written with the intention of meeting the reader’s predictability. This story has to be tactfully structured to appeal to the reader’s wants and desires. The essential elements of fiction writing are to... “provide entertainment and enjoyment, give readers a means of escapism, to present a sense of truth, and to inspire and hearten readers.”

It is important to note that Popular Fiction can and cannot be a classic text. But what does one mean by “Classic”? Wuthering Heights is a classic literary text which many would consider Popular Fiction. Are we exemplifying Gothic Victorian works such as Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights which is a Gothic horror romance classic? Or do we mean the Contemporary writing of Roald Dahl’s Short Stories which were so deeply horrific that some were made into episodes of the modern classic thriller Tales of the Unexpected on Television just recently, and which also falls under the umbrella of Popular Fiction.

Within the Writing and Publishing Industry the terms Literary Fiction and Popular Fiction are usually understood as:

Literary Fiction is that fiction where the author uses more advanced or sophisticated or nuanced language.

Popular Fiction, is that fiction where the writing is more accessible (and therefore more popular) with readers.

The question of what actually is Classical Popular Fiction is open to debate and we are all free to express our own opinions and views as there is no black and white answer. If you are like me and you are keen on Victorian Classics as well as Roald Dahl’s works which are Contemporary Classics, then you can see how Popular Fiction captivates a vast variety of readers. The end result is that by juxtaposing the Victorian era with the present the writer’s world caters for many expectations and textual appetites of readers in both these eras.